Effects of superabsorbent polymer on yield and yield components of Sesame under water deficit conditions

Water scarcity is the main cause of severe yield reduction in arid areas by creating harmful effects on the morphological, physiological, and biochemical characteristics of the plant. The application of soil amendments is a strategy to mitigate the adverse impact of drought stress. Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) are eco-friendly materials, which have incredible water absorption ability and water holding capacity in the soil, because of their unique biochemical and structural properties. This study aimed to investigate the effects of superabsorbent polymers on characteristics of sesame under different irrigation intervals. This experiment was performed in a split plot factorial with three replicates, arranged in RCBD with three drought factors as the main plot (Irrigation interval using cumulative evaporation from class A pan: 80 mm (I₁), 160 mm (I₂), and 240 mm (I₃), and superabsorbent (SAPs) STOCKOSORB in three levels (0, 100, 200 kg ha^-1) (Z₀, Z₁, Z₂) as the subplots. The application of superabsorbent polymers (200 kg ha^-1) increased the number of capsules per plant, the number of seeds per capsule, and grain yield by 15.8%, 27%, and 39%, respectively, compared with the control. Moreover, the application of superabsorbent polymers mitigated the adverse effects of increasing the irrigation intervals in biological yield, whereby biological yields in severe stress conditions (I₃) were similar to those obtained in mild stress (I₂). Our data demonstrated that the application of superabsorbent polymers could be a promising approach to improve plant yield, especially under water deficit conditions.